Automatic Rating of Hoarseness by Text-based Cepstral and Prosodic Evaluation

The standard for the analysis of distorted voices is perceptual rating of read-out texts or spontaneous speech. Automatic voice evaluation, however, is usually done on stable sections of sustained vowels. In this paper, text-based and established vowel-based analysis are compared with respect to their ability to measure hoarseness and its subclasses. 73 hoarse patients (48.3±16.8 years) uttered the vowel /e/ and read the German version of the text “The North Wind and the Sun”. Five speech therapists and physicians rated roughness, breathiness, and hoarseness according to the German RBH evaluation scheme. The best human-machine correlations were obtained for measures based on the Cepstral Peak Prominence (CPP; up to |r | = 0.73). Support Vector Regression (SVR) on CPP-based measures and prosodic features improved the results further to r ≈0.8 and confirmed that automatic voice evaluation should be performed on a text recording

Trace elements in glucometabolic disorders: an update

Many trace elements, among which metals, are indispensable for proper functioning of a myriad of biochemical reactions, more particularly as enzyme cofactors. This is particularly true for the vast set of processes involved in regulation of glucose homeostasis, being it in glucose metabolism itself or in hormonal control, especially insulin. The role and importance of trace elements such as chromium, zinc, selenium, lithium and vanadium are much less evident and subjected to chronic debate. This review updates our actual knowledge concerning these five trace elements. A careful survey of the literature shows that while theoretical postulates from some key roles of these elements had led to real hopes for therapy of insulin resistance and diabetes, the limited experience based on available data indicates that beneficial effects and use of most of them are subjected to caution, given the narrow window between safe and unsafe doses. Clear therapeutic benefit in these pathologies is presently doubtful but some data indicate that these metals may have a clinical interest in patients presenting deficiencies in individual metal levels. The same holds true for an association of some trace elements such as chromium or zinc with oral antidiabetics. However, this area is essentially unexplored in adequate clinical trials, which are worth being performed

ISSN exercise & sport nutrition review: research & recommendations

Sports nutrition is a constantly evolving field with hundreds of research papers published annually. For this reason, keeping up to date with the literature is often difficult. This paper is a five year update of the sports nutrition review article published as the lead paper to launch the JISSN in 2004 and presents a well-referenced overview of the current state of the science related to how to optimize training and athletic performance through nutrition. More specifically, this paper provides an overview of: 1.) The definitional category of ergogenic aids and dietary supplements; 2.) How dietary supplements are legally regulated; 3.) How to evaluate the scientific merit of nutritional supplements; 4.) General nutritional strategies to optimize performance and enhance recovery; and, 5.) An overview of our current understanding of the ergogenic value of nutrition and dietary supplementation in regards to weight gain, weight loss, and performance enhancement. Our hope is that ISSN members and individuals interested in sports nutrition find this review useful in their daily practice and consultation with their clients

Recull de propostes per minimitzar l'impacte negatiu de gènere del sistema de teletreball a l'Ajuntament de Barcelona

Finançat amb el projecte "Impacto de GÉnero del TEletrabajo y rutinas de COnfinamiento: más allá de lo obvio" (Ref. SUPERACOVID19_2.2.IGETECO) i a través de l'Ajuntament de Barcelona pel Servei d'Estudi sobre propostes per minimitzar l'impacte negatiu de gènere del sistema de teletreball a l'Ajuntament de Barcelona (exp.20002682)El present document recull les propostes d'actuació contingues a l'estudi Propostes per minimitzar l'impacte negatiu de gènere del sistema de teletreball a l'Ajuntament de Barcelona realitzat pel Centre d'Estudis Sociològics sobre la Vida Quotidiana i el Treball (QUIT) de la Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona. L'emergència sanitària provocada per la Covid19 i el necessari confinament de la població per combatre la pandèmia ha significat, des del punt de vista de l'organització del treball, un canvi molt important cap a l'impuls de formes de treball a distància. Però aquest impuls del teletreball ha estat una resposta fruit de l'emergència, lògica davant la situació viscuda i, com a tal, no ha pogut ser planificada amb el temps i els mitjans necessaris